Reinstall or Restore?

To clean out the clutter and improve things, I recently uninstalled my W98
SE operating system using the command prompt. But I don't think the
uninstall completed itself, as it ran over a half hour before I stopped it.
I then reinstalled the OS from the CD.

The PC runs okay, but there has been no real improvement in speed or
performance. Worse, some applications have caused problems. For example, I
lost the Uninstall options for MS Money and some Symantec/Norton 2003
products. I uninstalled Symantec using their online utilities. After I
loaded new 2004 Norton Int. Security software, it will not launch. (I did
not yet activate the software.) There may be other problems not yet evident.

I have the W98SE CD, and also the manufacturer's original Restore CD. I feel
I need to wipe the existing OS and start over. I'm not sure which route to
go. I know the Restore CD should take the PC back to a factory-new state,
which seems like a good thing. I've already saved any data files worth
keeping, and can reinstall any software apps I need.

Or should I just reinstall W98? If so, is there a better way to remove the
current OS?

I'd appreciate any thoughts (and links on how-to) on which option might be
best to do. (And if you have any comments on the Norton issue, like why it
won't launch, that would be great.)

Thanks in advance.

The only way you can uninstall W98SE is if you upgraded over W98, elected to
save the files and want to revert back to W98. I would not recommend this
process to anyone. To get a clean install, back up all data you want and
then either delete the Windows folder from DOS, format the C: partition or
install W98SE to a new folder (for example, win98 instead of windows). For
information on installing W98, go to:
http://home.satx.rr.com/badour/html/w98_restore.html

If your W98SE disk is an upgrade disk, your W98 restore disk might not work
as a qualifying system disk. If this is the case, you would have to do a
restore and then upgrade to SE. The problem with a restore is that it loads
all kinds of crap you don't want or need.

I will not have a Norton product on my machines and many of the regulars who
post here feel the same way. 2004 is so problematic that MVP Ron Martell
has decided it may be a virus G.

AntiVirus programs

AVG, free AV program: http://www.grisoft.com/us/us_dwnl_free.php

ETrust, reasonably priced AV program that I use:
http://www1.my-etrust.com

EZ Armor Security Suite, One year free trial :
http://www.my-etrust.com/microsoft/

--
Regards

Ron Badour, MS MVP for W98
Tips: http://home.satx.rr.com/badour
Knowledge Base Info:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?pr=kbinfo

"RickD" wrote in message
...
To clean out the clutter and improve things, I recently uninstalled my W98
SE operating system using the command prompt. But I don't think the
uninstall completed itself, as it ran over a half hour before I stopped
it.
I then reinstalled the OS from the CD.

The PC runs okay, but there has been no real improvement in speed or
performance. Worse, some applications have caused problems. For example, I
lost the Uninstall options for MS Money and some Symantec/Norton 2003
products. I uninstalled Symantec using their online utilities. After I
loaded new 2004 Norton Int. Security software, it will not launch. (I did
not yet activate the software.) There may be other problems not yet
evident.

I have the W98SE CD, and also the manufacturer's original Restore CD. I
feel
I need to wipe the existing OS and start over. I'm not sure which route to
go. I know the Restore CD should take the PC back to a factory-new state,
which seems like a good thing. I've already saved any data files worth
keeping, and can reinstall any software apps I need.

Or should I just reinstall W98? If so, is there a better way to remove the
current OS?

I'd appreciate any thoughts (and links on how-to) on which option might be
best to do. (And if you have any comments on the Norton issue, like why it
won't launch, that would be great.)

Thanks in advance.